Ministry of Tribal Affairs
Speaker, Lok Sabha Visits “Aadi Mahotsav” at Dilli Haat
The Speaker, Lok Sabha Shri Om Birla visited the National Tribal Festival “Aadi Mahotsav”at Dilli Haat, INA, today. The 15 days’ festival  is the celebration of the spirit of Tribal Craft, Culture, Cuisine and Commerce. Union Tribal Affairs Minister Shri Arjun Munda, Chairman, TRIFED, Shri R.C. Meenaand MD, TRIFED, Shri Pravir Krishna were present on the occasion.
The Speaker visited the Stalls put up by tribal artisans and interacted with them. He witnessed the Tribal Cultural performances on the occasion.
Addressing the tribal artists and artisans, Shri Birla praised Ministry of Tribal Affairs and TRIFED for their unique exemplary efforts for transforming the lives of tribal people of our country. He paid homage to tribal freedom fighters. He opined that the tribal people are true protectors of our nature and environment. Aadi Mahotsav is a very novel initiative for overall development and welfare of tribal people of our country. He congratulated all participating tribal artists and artisans for their creative endeavors and it is very important that their natural skills must be channeled to promote their sources of income for their better life.
In his address, Shri Arjun Munda said that thetribal people have always fought for our country since ancient period till freedom struggle. They are firm believer in Panchtatva and have always protected our nature and environment. He opined that tribal people are protector of our ancient culture also and always away from social evils. The Adivasi way of life is guided by primal truth, eternal values and a natural simplicity. The tribes of India have a wide range of handicrafts. The Aadi Mahotsav is an effort to take tribal commerce to the next level of digital and electronic transactions. The concept of organizing Aadi Mahotsav in major cities of the country has proved to be a boon for tribal artisans.
Chairman TRIFED, Shri R. C. Meena, in his speech said that TRIFED is doing significant workfor the overall development and welfare of tribal people and events like Aadi Mahotsav are veryimportant in this regard. The tribes of India have a wide range of handicrafts and the governmentseeks to promote interaction between tribal artisans and the people.
The theme of the Mahotsav is: “A Celebration of the Spirit of Tribal Culture, Craft, Cuisine and Commerce”. The festival features exhibition-cum-sale of tribal handicrafts, art, paintings, fabric, jewellery and much more through 220stalls. Over 1000 tribal artisans and artists from different States creating a Mini-India are participating in thefestival.
Post inauguration of event on 16th November 2019, the balance 14 days of the festival have been dedicated to Parliamentarian’s Day, All India Service Day, Diplomats Day, Tourism Day, Defence Day, Sports Day, Textile Day, IAS Officers Wive’s Association, Media Day, Cooperative Day, North East Day, TRIFED Partner/Tribal Entrepreneur Day with Closing Ceremony on last day i.e. 30th November 2019.
The tribal textiles manufactured by Master tribal Craftsmen from Jammu & Kashmir in the North to Tamil Nadu in the South and from Gujarat in the West to Nagaland/Sikkim in the East are the main attractions. For the first time, this AADI MAHOTSAV is showcasing a wide range of products from the tribal artisan from Leh . Apart from this special attraction a wide range of products from North Easter States are on display and sale. TheTribalhandicrafts are soldthrough more than 220Stalls under the Tribes Banner by tribalArtisans.
In line with the national aspiration to go cashless, the tribal artisans are accepting payment through major credit/debit cards for which Point of Sale  machines have been provided in each stall. A special training has been conducted by State Bank of India for smooth operations of this. The Mahotsav is displaying the rich digital commerce and e-commerce being promoted by Tribes India.
TRIBES India proudly informs the signing of MOUs with Amazon, Amazon.com, Snapdeal, Flipkart, PayTM and GEM, a Government of India Portal for e-commerce of the tribal products. Besides TRIBES India has also has its own e-com portalwww.tribesindia.com.The Aadi Mahotsav is an effort to take tribal commerce to the next level of digital and electronic transactions. The Mahotsav apart from exotic handicrafts is also showcasing the electronic and digital skills of the tribals as a special attraction.